A Drop of Dew by Edgar Omar Avilés translated by Toshiya A. Kamei A drop of dew on the tip of a trembling willow leaf refuses to fall and be swallowed by the ground. The drop, desperately, with her eyes shut tight, begs the gods for mercy. Two drops rise from her and then four; and the drop becomes a drip; and the drop becomes rain; and the drop becomes a storm; and the drop becomes a river and waterfall; and the drop becomes a sea; and the drop becomes a merciless flood spilling into ports and cities: the cries and screams of the living creatures fill the world, and even the continents drown. Powerful, the drop of dew laughs, but she stops as she feels the dry throat of the ground devouring her. Then she opens her eyes and looks up at the willow tree and the leaf, still trembling, from which she has fallen. Una gota de rocío, en la punta de una temblorosa hoja de sauce, se niega a caer y ser tragada por la tierra. La gota, desesperada, con sus ojillos cerrados, suplica a los dioses misericordia: entonces de ella surgen dos gotas y luego cuatro; y la gota se convierte en gotera; y la gota se convierte en lluvia; y la gota se convierte en tormenta; y la gota se convierte en río y cascada; y la gota se convierte en mar; y la gota se convierte en una despiadada inundación que se derrama en puertos y ciudades: los llantos y gritos de los seres abarcan al Mundo, cuyos continentes sucumben ahogándose también. Poderosa, la gota de rocío se carcajea, pero deja de hacerlo al sentir la seca garganta de la tierra devorándola, entonces abre sus ojillos y arriba ve al sauce y a la hoja, todavía temblorosa, de la que ha caído. All content in SmokeLong Quarterly copyright 2003-2008 by its authors.
	Edgar Omar Avilés was born in Morelia, Michoacán, México, in 1980. He is a graduate of the writing program at the Sociedad General de Escritores de México (SOGEM). His stories have appeared in literary journals and anthologies, including Los Mejores Cuentos Mexicanos 2004 (Joaquín Mortiz) and Novísimos Cuentos de la República Mexicana (Tierra Adentro, 2005). Toshiya A. Kamei is an MFA student in translation at the University of Arkansas. Toshiya's translations of Mexican poetry and fiction have appeared in Bonfire, Amarillo Bay, SmokeLong Quarterly, Literal, Eclectica, Mslexia, The Foliate Oak, Hobart, among others Read the interview.
	Issue Eleven (December 15, 2005): Forks in the Road by Eve Abrams «» Retirement Home by Greg Ames «» A Drop of Dew by Edgar Omar Avilés, translated by Toshiya Kamei «» No One Left to Care About the Fat Man by Rusty Barnes «» The Mother's Guide to Flight Patterns by Theresa Boyar «» It's All True by Nadine Darling «» What She Gave to the Sea by Katrina Denza «» It by Patry Francis «» Cemetery Day by Laurie Frankel «» Cityscape by Judd Hampton «» The Black Squirrels of Ottawa by Niranjana Iyer «» Diagnosis by Beverly A. Jackson «» Green Monster by Erica Plouffe Lazure «» Sophie, Now by Mary McCluskey «» A Blind Dog Named Killer and a Colony of Bees by Mary Miller «» The Sky Is a Well by Claudia Smith «» You Only Get One Chance to Be El Latigo by Elizabeth Smith «» Flights by Jim Tomlinson «» Song of Giants by Girija Tropp «» Ice by Joseph Young «» Interviews: Eve Abrams «» Greg Ames «» Rusty Barnes «» Theresa Boyar «» Myfanwy Collins «» Nadine Darling «» Katrina Denza «» Patry Francis «» Laurie Frankel «» Judd Hampton «» Marty D. Ison «» Niranjana Iyer «» Beverly A. Jackson «» Toshiya Kamei «» Erica Plouffe Lazure «» Mary McCluskey «» Mary Miller «» Claudia Smith «» Elizabeth Smith «» Jim Tomlinson «» Girija Tropp «» Joseph Young «» Cover Art "Detail of The Death of Susan" by Marty D. Ison «» Letter From the Editor